The latest articles on DEV Community by krisakma (@krisakma). https://dev.to/krisakma https://media2.dev.to/dynamic/image/width=90,height=90,fit=cover,gravity=auto,format=auto/https:%2F%2Fdev-to-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fuploads%2Fuser%2Fprofile_image%2F3847178%2F2d655dc0-a15d-4d7a-a7bc-98c617fa1c5f.png https://dev.to/krisakma en krisakma Sat, 28 Mar 2026 07:15:31 +0000 https://dev.to/krisakma/i-built-3-free-developer-tools-as-a-solo-dev-heres-what-i-learned-ifk https://dev.to/krisakma/i-built-3-free-developer-tools-as-a-solo-dev-heres-what-i-learned-ifk <p>I'm a solo developer from Seoul, and over the past few months I built <a href="https://clickvolt.app" rel="noopener noreferrer">ClickVolt</a> — a URL safety scanner. But the tools I ended up using the most are the <strong>3 free developer tools</strong> I added along the way.</p> <p>All of them are 100% free, no signup required, no usage limits.</p> <h2> 1. Repo vs Repo — GitHub Repository Comparison </h2> <p><strong>→ <a href="https://clickvolt.app/tools/compare" rel="noopener noreferrer">clickvolt.app/tools/compare</a></strong></p> <p>Ever struggled to choose between two similar libraries? This tool lets you compare any two GitHub repos side by side.</p> <p><strong>What it shows:</strong></p> <ul> <li>Stars, forks, open issues, watchers</li> <li>Primary language, license</li> <li>Latest release version and date</li> <li>Average weekly commits (4-week and 12-week)</li> <li>52-week commit activity chart</li> </ul> <p>I pre-loaded popular matchups like React vs Vue, Next.js vs Remix, Express vs Fastify, Prisma vs Drizzle ORM, and more.</p> <p><strong>Why I built it:</strong> I kept opening two GitHub tabs and manually comparing numbers. Figured I'd automate it.</p> <h2> 2. Repo Radar — Open Source Tool Explorer </h2> <p><strong>→ <a href="https://clickvolt.app/tools/radar" rel="noopener noreferrer">clickvolt.app/tools/radar</a></strong></p> <p>Browse popular open source tools across <strong>20 categories</strong>: Frontend, Backend, Fullstack, CSS, Auth, ORM, API, Testing, UI Components, State Management, Deployment, AI/ML, and more.</p> <p>Each category shows 5-15 popular repos ranked by stars, with one-click comparison.</p> <h2> 3. Deploy Checker — Production Readiness Audit </h2> <p><strong>→ <a href="https://clickvolt.app/tools/deploy-check" rel="noopener noreferrer">clickvolt.app/tools/deploy-check</a></strong></p> <p>Enter any URL and get a readiness check across 4 categories:</p> <ul> <li> <strong>Security:</strong> SSL/HTTPS, security headers (CSP, HSTS, etc.)</li> <li> <strong>SEO:</strong> Title, meta description, heading structure</li> <li> <strong>Social:</strong> Open Graph tags, Twitter Card</li> <li> <strong>Performance:</strong> Response time, page size, compression, caching</li> </ul> <p>I use this before every deployment to catch missing headers or broken OG tags.</p> <h2> Tech Stack </h2> <ul> <li> <strong>Framework:</strong> Next.js 16 (App Router)</li> <li> <strong>Language:</strong> TypeScript</li> <li> <strong>Styling:</strong> Tailwind CSS v4 + shadcn/ui</li> <li> <strong>Database:</strong> Supabase (PostgreSQL)</li> <li> <strong>AI:</strong> Claude API (for URL scanner's page summaries)</li> <li> <strong>Hosting:</strong> Vercel</li> </ul> <h2> The Main Product </h2> <p>The core product is a <strong>URL safety scanner</strong> — paste any link, get a safety score (0-100), AI summary of what the page does, and a wrapped safe link you can share. Free: 5 scans/day.</p> <p><strong>Lesson learned:</strong> Free tools that solve small, everyday problems are the best marketing for your main product.</p> <p>I'd love feedback — which tool do you find most useful? Any features you'd want added?</p> webdev opensource github showdev